The present invention generally relates to a driver information system comprising an operating device having at least two operational control units and a holding unit for the operational control units, and a control device for validating control signals delivered by the operational control units.
Driver information systems of the afore-mentioned kind are well known and are now employed in a plurality of different vehicles. They do not only serve to display navigation information but have developed towards a central operational and control device by which a plurality of components in the vehicle may be controlled. The driver information system comprises a monitor on which relevant information as well as the option menus necessary for operation are displayed. The operation itself is carried out in many cases by means of a central operational control unit which have many degrees of freedom. In one exemplary case the operational control unit is provided as a rotary-push button. In addition to this rotary-push button further operational control units like switches and the like are provided, particularly for allowing fast navigation within the selection menus.
The operational control units are generally located in the middle part of a dashboard between the driver and the co-driver so that the operational control units may be reached easily by the driver.
Although such a driver information system is already a reliable system, there is a demand for offering different design variations with respect to the driver information system, however, without causing higher costs for custom-made parts.